My Only Regret (Twisted Fate Book 1) (18 page)

“
Thank you, I feel stunning,
”
I grinned, broadly. The look in his eyes told me that I had chosen the right dress. He didn’t take his eyes off me while I stood there basking in his approval.

“
Dance with me,
”
he commanded, leading me to the dance floor where Frank Sinatra was crooning Come Fly With Me.
He moved gracefully across the floor, and I felt light on my feet as he guided me.
“
I love this dress,
”
he said, hitching my leg around him, and running a hand languidly down my thigh.
“
It accents all of your best features.
”
He began listing them off.
“
Your breasts. Your ass. Your thighs. Your sexy curves. Your breasts.
”

I blushed and settled my cheek in the curve of his neck, giggling softly. “
You said breasts twice.
”

“
They deserve twice the attention because they are so amazing,
”
he whispered in my ear and dipped me back. I couldn’t remember ever feeling this happy. He knew just what to say to make me feel beautiful and loved. He spun me around the room in my elegant dress, looking at me as if I were the most beautiful woman on the planet. I never wanted this night to end. We danced through four more songs before making our way to the bar. Jesse handed me a glass of champagne and he continued drinking his favorite whiskey. Soon, the rest of the band made their way over and Stefani gushed over my dress.

“Rhyann,
you're positively radiant,
”
she gushed.
“
This dress is perfect for you. You look like a bride.
”
It was obvious she had been hitting the bar a bit too frequently.

“
Rhyann, what are you doing wasting your time with this bum? Come, run away with me, we can go to one of those chapels and get married by Elvis,
”
Sam bellowed, as he draped an arm around my shoulder and kissed my cheek. He smelled of whiskey and cologne.

“
Watch it bro
’
I wouldn
’
t want to have to hurt you,
”
Jesse stepped over and held his hand out for me to take.

“
He
’
s just jealous of our secret love,
”
Sam slurred. Clearly, he had way too much to drink. I was beginning to think that all of us would be feeling pretty rough in the morning. We shared another round before heading back to the dance floor. David and Sam had each found a woman to dance with.
 

“She’s right you know. You do look like a beautiful bride. Maybe some day you’ll be my bride,” Jesse whispered. Now I knew he was well over the limit. Before a night of drinking, dancing, and dress up, marriage had been the furthest thing from our minds, and now it was suddenly the hot topic of conversation.

“What did I tell you about making promises you can’t keep?” I teased. We danced and drank well into the morning. We arrived back at our suite and Jesse stooped down and lifted me off my feet.
 

“What are you doing?” I squealed.

“Carrying you over the threshold,” he replied, nibbling on my neck.

“Silly, that’s only for when you get married,” I slapped playfully at his arm.

“Then let’s do it,” he said, his tone suddenly very serious.

“Do what?”

“Get married.” He looked at me, waiting for a response.

“Jesse, that is really sweet, but I think we’ve both had too much to drink,” I replied, squirming to be set down. Once my feet were firmly touching the ground I placed my palms against his chest. “Maybe we should just go to bed.”

His eyes studied mine for a moment before he leaned in and covered my now quivering lips with his. He drew back and smiled wickedly at me before dropping to one knee. My heart immediately jumped to my throat and I sobered up quickly. Surely he wasn’t serious. He cleared his throat and raised his eyes to meet mine.
 

“Rhyann, I know we haven’t been together long, but I can’t think of anyone I would rather spend the rest of my life with. Would you please do me the honor of being my wife? Marry me baby, make me the happiest man in the world.”

My hands flew up to cover my face and I felt hot tears stinging my eyes. I knew in my heart what my answer would be, and I prayed like hell that I wouldn’t regret it one day. I lowered one hand and saw him looking up at me waiting for my response. I lowered the other, and he took it between his warm hands. “Rhyann?” he urged, gently.

“But... Are you sure this is what you want?” I whispered, looking into his eyes, finding warmth and clarity, and finally, my answer. I nodded my head slowly before opening my mouth. “Yes. Yes, I will marry you.”
 

He stood and spun me around before kissing me fiercely. Then he took me by the hand and led me back down the corridor to the elevator. He held my hand tightly in his and stroked his thumb across the back of my hand. Once we exited the hotel he hailed a cab and instructed the driver to take us to the nearest wedding chapel. When we arrived at our destination Jesse paid the driver and we stood on the sidewalk just outside the chapel.
 

“Are you sure about this?” I asked, giving him one last chance to change his mind. He didn’t answer. Instead, he gave me a quick wink and led me straight through the double doors.

T
he next morning I woke to find the most gorgeous pair of green eyes staring back at me. I lifted my hand and cupped his face. Only yesterday we had boarded a plane as lovers, now we were husband and wife. It had all happened so fast, and even though his eyes showed no sign of remorse, I couldn’t help but wonder if we hadn’t jumped in too quickly.
 

“Good morning,” I whispered, unable to hold back my smile. I took his left hand in mine and pulled it to my lips, kissing the fresh ink that decorated his ring finger. After our quick ceremony, Jesse had led me to a nearby tattoo parlor where he chose to have my name permanently inscribed on his finger in place of a wedding ring. Seeing that single word displayed proudly for the world to see had inspired me to have his name placed on my left wrist, in the exact spot he had given me his autograph less than two weeks ago.
 

“Good morning,” he smiled and placed a wet kiss on my wrist. “How do you feel this morning?” he asked devilishly. After we’d returned to the room, he had carried me back over the threshold and proceeded to make love to me for hours until we fell asleep holding each other.

“I’m a little sore. Why do you ask?” I giggled, suggestively sliding my toes up his calf.

“Well, I ask because I’d like to make love to my beautiful wife if that’s okay with her.” His voice was raspy, and his body was still warm from just waking up. His lips found mine as he lowered himself over me and nuzzled my nose with his.
 

“Hi Mrs. Montgomery.” He had a smile that could melt my heart, and often did. This morning, however, it did so much more to so many places throughout my body.

“Hi Mr. Montgomery.” I giggled once more.
 

We made love slowly and sweetly, nothing like the passion we’d shared last night, before we fell back asleep with his body spooning mine. We slept for most of the morning until we woke to the sound of pounding on the door.

“Shit, that’s definitely Sam,” he said, rolling his eyes. “That guy has way too much energy.”

“Go answer the door before he breaks it down,” I laughed, nudging him off the bed before I stretched and got up to get dressed. I heard everyone’s boisterous voices and couldn’t help but smile. This was officially my family now. I threw on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and headed out to join them. Upon entering the room I was greeted with hugs and hearty congratulations from everyone in the room. Stefani pulled me aside and hugged me tightly.

“I am so happy for you both. He seems genuinely smitten with you Rhyann. I’ve never seen him this happy. I must admit that we had no idea you two would run off and get married after our teasing last night. Who knew that would spark such romantic thoughts,” she giggled. “How exciting. I wish we could have all been there with you.”

“I'm sorry, but we have some pictures,” I replied, suddenly feeling guilty for excluding everyone. This was Jesse’s family and we had purposely snuck off and married without giving them a second thought. We shared the few wedding photos that were taken by our fake Elvis’s assistant and discussed plans for tonight’s charity concert before they all headed out to grab some lunch.
 

Once they were gone I decided to grab a quick shower and had just finished getting my hair wet when I felt Jesse’s presence in the room. Through the steamy glass doors I watched as he quickly undressed and stepped into the spacious shower stall. He approached me from behind, and I smiled as his hands slipped around the front of my body, stopping when they reached my breasts. His calloused fingers stroked expertly, sending shock waves to my most sensitive areas. His right hand continued its work while the left moved between my legs, parting the tender flesh and causing a soft whimper to escape my throat.
 

“I know you’re sore baby, I’ll be gentle.” One finger slid down to my opening and slipped gently inside. My breathing quickened as I rocked against the rhythm of his moving hand. I felt a second finger enter, and moaned loudly as his thumb moved slowly over my swollen nub. In just a few short moments he had managed to play me like an instrument. His lips pushed and pulled against mine, and his fingers played against my breasts. I was on the brink and about to fall over the edge. With one final stroke I found my release, sinking against his hardened body for stability. My insides trembled, causing my whole body to shake.
 

“I love you.” The words spilled freely from my mouth, and I wondered just how it was that I was standing before a man that women looked upon as a living sex symbol. How in the world had I come to be the woman he had chosen to be his wife? Would he always be there for me? Would I love him forever? And did a forever love truly exist? All of these things flashed through my brain as he held me. Here we were, two damaged souls that through the course of fate had found each other, and supported each other through friendship, and somehow we had managed to fall in love along the way.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

“I love you too, with everything that I am,” he professed, kissing me gently. We stepped out of the shower, and after drying off, crawled back into bed. The bed seemed like a safe place for us to be, and right now I wanted to lock out the world and keep him all to myself. He pulled me tight against him, my back to his front.

“You know that I’m going to screw up from time to time don’t you? It’s going to take time to adjust. I’ve never had to commit to one woman before.” He covered my hand with his and squeezed gently. “I’m going to make you the happiest woman in the world. I just need you to be patient with me.”

“And I need the same from you. I’ve never loved anyone before. I’ve never said those words to anyone other than my mother or Mel. I’m sure that I said them to my Father but …” my voice choked up and I felt Jesse’s arms tighten their grip around me, reminding me of his strength, a strength that I had only recently allowed myself to come to depend on. “You are the first man that I have ever loved. I just hope that I’m not the one to screw things up. Just promise me that there won’t be any more women in your life. I won’t share you. I have to know that I am the only one you need.” I cried softly.

“You are. I told you baby, you are everything to me. There is no one else.” I turned and kissed him sweetly on the lips before settling back into him. He held me that way for more than an hour before the sound of a ringing phone interrupted us. The conversation was quick but I noticed his demeanor had shifted slightly.
 

“I’m sorry, but I have to go rehearse and do a photo shoot before tonight’s show. Are you going to be okay if I leave you here?”

“You don’t want me to come with you?” I asked, sitting up.

He hopped on one leg as he pulled up his jeans. “I mean, you can come if you want, but you’d just be sitting around, and it can get pretty boring. You can hang out here and come down in a few hours. Maybe you can head down to the casino for a bit or go shopping. I loved what you bought yesterday,” he bent down and nipped playfully at my earlobe.

“Sure, now I see what it’s going to be like. The honeymoon is already over,” I laughed. “Don’t worry about me, I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself. You go on and I’ll see you tonight. Should I meet you backstage before the show, maybe for a little pre-show performance?” I asked, pulling him in for one last kiss goodbye.
 

“No way this honeymoon is over. It hasn’t even started baby,” he growled, giving me a wet kiss. “Just meet me backstage afterwards and I’ll show you what rockstars do to burn off stage high,” he ruffled my hair and kissed me once more before shoving off the bed.

A
fter he left I watched some television and tried calling Mel. I wanted to tell her about my whirlwind marriage but the call went straight to voicemail. I hung up, not wanting to tell her like that, and wandered aimlessly around the room. I knew I couldn’t stay in this room all afternoon by myself. I decided to fix my hair and makeup and head down to the show early, maybe try to catch him before the show started even though he had discouraged that notion. I wasn’t sure how he would react when he saw me, but I felt that I belonged there. I wasn’t only his new wife, I was also his personal assistant, and it was my job to be there for him. I took my time styling my hair, and slipped on the pair of black leather pants that Jesse had bought me along with a low cut pink sweater that hugged my breasts. My tall black boots accented my behind nicely so I decided they would be a perfect addition to my outfit. I took one last look in the mirror and, liking what I saw, headed downstairs.

I wove my way through the crowded casino, stopping only twice to place a bet on the roulette table, and one hand of black jack. I had two men buy me a drink, and I couldn’t help but smile knowing that I had made the right decision when choosing my outfit for the evening. I carried my second Cosmo with me as I made my across the sprawling hotel. I knew that Jesse would be performing in the Garden Arena so I continued my journey, praying that he would be happy to see me. As I approached the entrance to the venue I saw Stefani going in ahead of me. I called out and then sped up to catch her.